What is expressing breast milk?

Once you've expressed your milk, you can store it in the fridge or freezer to bottle feed to your baby later.

What's the benefit of expressing breast milk?

Expressing means your baby can still have the benefits of breast milk even if you are away from her. Whether you're just out for a few hours, or have gone back to work, your baby can carry on enjoying your milk while someone else is caring for her.

If you're out for long, you will also need to express while you and your baby are apart. This will stop your breasts becoming too full and uncomfortable.

If you gave birth prematurely, your baby may not be able to take milk straight from your breast at first. You can help her by expressing your milk.

How do I express milk?

Expressing by hand is the cheapest way to do it, because you don't need to buy equipment. It does take a bit of getting used to. The trick is to put pressure on the milk ducts behind your nipple, rather than squeezing the nipple itself. It's a useful knack to have and can help you to relieve your breasts if they're too full. Find out more about expressing by hand.

You may find it easier to use a manual or electric pump. To use an electric pump, you put a suction cup over your breast, turn the machine on, and let it do the work. It'll extract your milk, depositing it in an attached container. Manual pumps also use a suction cup, but you'll have to repeatedly squeeze a handle to extract your milk.

It takes anywhere between 15 minutes and 45 minutes to pump both your breasts. Don't use time to guide you, though. Just pump for as long as your milk is flowing well. Change breasts when the flow slows down, and pump each breast twice. Good breast pumps try to mimic the sucking action of your baby, stimulating your milk to come in (letdown reflex). Expressing shouldn't be painful.

Knowing which breast pump is right for you depends on:

how often you plan to use a pump

how much time you can spare for expressing

If you only need to express the odd feed, expressing by hand or using a cheaper manual pump may do. But if you work full-time and have to pump during a busy day, you might want to choose an ultrafast hospital-grade electric pump. These are expensive to buy, so you could rent one first to try it out.

If you're using a breast pump, try these tips:

Sit comfortably with your back straight.

Support your breast from underneath. Place your fingers flat on your ribs with your first finger between your breast and your ribs.

Ease your nipple into the funnel. Make sure your nipple is in the centre of the funnel.

Keep the funnel close enough to maintain a seal with your skin, without forcing it onto your breast.

Be patient. It often takes a minute or two for your milk to flow well.

Pump until the milk flow slows down, and then switch to the second breast. When the flow slows on the second breast, go back to the first. Finally, finish on the second when the flow slows for the second time.

If you are pumping both breasts at the same time (double pumping), turn the pump off for 30 seconds or so when the flow slows. Then turn it back on and carry on until it slows again. Using a double pump can be tricky at first - you only have two hands! But keep practising and it will get easier.

How do I store breast milk?

It is best to put breast milk in plastic feeding bottles with secure tops to seal in freshness. You can also use plastic bags made especially for storing milk, or disposable baby bottle liners. Remember to write the date on the bottle or bag before putting it in the fridge or freezer. It'll make it easy for you to work out in which order to use batches.

To keep your milk safe in the fridge, you need to know how cold your fridge is. If your fridge doesn’t have a built-in thermometer, you can buy one from a kitchen or hardware shop.

Freshly expressed milk can be stored for:

up to five days in the main part of a fridge, at 4 degrees C or lower

up to two weeks in the freezer compartment of a fridge

up to six months in a freezer, at minus 18 degrees C or lower

If you plan to store expressed breast milk for fewer than five days, keeping it in the fridge is the best way to maintain all its goodness (BFN 2009, NICE 2008).

Freezing milk destroys some of its antibodies. Antibodies are chemicals our bodies make to fight infections. So it's best not to freeze any that you plan to use within the time limits. Frozen breast milk is still healthier for your baby than formula milk.

You can thaw frozen milk in any of the following ways:

place the bottle or bag in a bowl of warm water

run it under warm tap water

defrost it in the fridge overnight

It's tempting to speed up the thawing or warming process, especially when you're busy. But using a microwave or hob to do the job will kill the nutrients in your breast milk. Once the milk is thawed, use it straight away (BFN 2009). Throw away partially drunk portions of milk. The milk will have mixed with your baby’s saliva and may not be hygienic for him next time.

As well as a breast pump and containers for milk storage, you may need a portable cool box to carry expressed milk home from work. Read our article about work and breastfeeding to find out more.

Comments

My baby never slept well (especially through the night) until I started using the website >>SleepBaby.org<< - that website has been by far one of the best things I've ever got my hands on to get him to fall asleep quickly. Best time is 45 seconds from awake to asleep! Can’t imagine life without it! I heard about it through a kindergarten teacher who uses it to put to sleep a group of 30 children. Check it out! >>SleepBaby.org<< - sorry, you can't post links here so you'll have to turn it into a normal link :) Best of luck to you and your family!

This Internet site provides information of a general nature and is designed for educational purposes only. If you have any concerns about your own health or the health of your child, you should always consult with a doctor or other healthcare professional. Please review the Terms of Use before using this site. Your use of the site indicates your agreement to be bound by the Terms of Use.

This site is published by BabyCenter, L.L.C., which is responsible for its contents as further described and qualified in the Terms of Use.

Support for your parenting journey. Delivered to your inbox.

My Baby This Week Newsletter

Keep up with your baby’s development with personalized weekly newsletters.